Lexus V8 Oil Changes

[budcook]

I've owned Mercedes for more than 20 years but am thinking of buying a new LS430 or GS430. I do my own maintenance and wonder if the oil filter on the V8's are accessable from the top of the engine or does the car have to be on a hoist/lift?

Is there an encapsulation panel below the engine like on Mercedes?

Do you have to remove the panel to drain the oil?

Thanks in advance.

[ColinBarber]

The drain plug should be accessible on the bottom of the engine without removing any covers.

The filter is near the bottom of the engine. It is covered by an engine cover however it doesn't have to be removed. There are a couple of bolts which when removed allow part of the cover to hinge down allowing access to the filter (on the GS at least - would have thought the LS is the same).

[flotsam]

"I do my own maintenance"

Don't you need one of those multi-million pound diagnostics machines to test all those computers?

Don't you want "Full Lexus Service History" when you come to sell? It is supposed to be fixed cost + labour!

[budcook]

"I do my own maintenance"

Don't you need one of those multi-million pound diagnostics machines to test all those computers?

Don't you want "Full Lexus Service History" when you come to sell? It is supposed to be fixed cost + labour!

The buyer of my last Mercedes was quite happy to have a Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet that showed the car had been serviced with TLC and had only MB and Mobil 1 parts and fluids in it.

My current 13 year old 300E has been to a dealer only to have the transmission serviced. Otherwise, I have been able to do it all with simple Sears tools and the knowledge that I care far more about my car than anyone else.

One of the reasons I'm thinking about Lexus is that Mercedes have pushed the envelope way too far. Brake by wire is over the edge despite the theoretical advantages.

BTW, it probably won't be long before Toyota picks up more of Mercedes technology and gets leading edge windburn too.

[ColinBarber]

Toyota have used throttle by wire for some time and the next generation of cars will probably have brake and steering by wire which will be used for the latest traction control systems.

Toyota spend more on R&D than any other auto manufacturer so don't just have to copy MB.

[budcook]

Toyota have used throttle by wire for some time and the next generation of cars will probably have brake and steering by wire which will be used for the latest traction control systems.

Toyota spend more on R&D than any other auto manufacturer so don't just have to copy MB.

Toyota is the best run auto company in the world and one of the reasons is that they let the Germans (especially Mercedes) do their R&D for them. Just about every automotive advancement on the LS-430 came from Mercedes. Mercedes are stupid to give away all their safety technology when the rest of the auto companies benefit from it.

Where Toyota also shines is that they take expensive technology from the Germans and incorporate it into lower priced cars while maintaining a very high standard of quality and reliability.

The American car industry are hopelessly inept at this and I believe it is due to the fact that they simply cannot keep from trying to save a few dollars here and there and because they simply don't don't have the engineering knowhow to build world class products except for cost-no-object projects like military and space projects.

I'm waiting to see the new GS-500 and GS-350 before I buy a new car. The current GS are just too outdated, the LS-430 is too big for me and the other models are FWD which I've never liked.

[flotsam]

The buyer of my last Mercedes was quite happy to have a Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet that showed the car had been serviced with TLC and had only MB and Mobil 1 parts and fluids in it.

One of the reasons I'm thinking about Lexus is that Mercedes have pushed the envelope way too far. Brake by wire is over the edge despite the theoretical advantages.

BTW, it probably won't be long before Toyota picks up more of Mercedes technology and gets leading edge windburn too.

The buyer of you last Mercedes didn't give a damn. Those of us who buy with our heads know to walk away.

Brake by wire isn't a problem besides, I trust Lexus to get it right. I don't believe they steal the technology wholesale. They usually add it to compete and being Lexus that has to be better quality for a lower price. So the brake-by-wire will be Lexus's own version with improvements over the Mercedes design.

[budcook]

The buyer of my last Mercedes was a neighbor who knew the car and paid me $500 over retail. The car was 18 years old and I could prove that I took far better care of it than a dealer would.

For example, I always used a true synthetic oil. The local Lexus dealer is offering 10W-30 Mobil 1 which is no longer a base 4 oil. It's a base 3 oil that is a petroleum base. Mercedes have taken it off their recommended list.

If I owned a Lexus, I'd use the same oil that Mercedes and Porsche use...0W-40 Mobil 1.

I used 15W-50 Mobil 1 in my older 300E. 0W-40 and 15W-50 are base 4 oils.

I never allow tap water anywhere in my cars including the cooling system. Anybody who knows anything knows that it's tap water that screws up cooing systems yet every dealer I know of uses tap water in cooling systems.

I also sold my BMW for well over retail because I could show the buyer that I knew what I was doing.

Anybody who thinks that they are getting the best possible service from a dealer is fooling themselves. I'll take a car from a dedicated DIY'er any time.

[ColinBarber]

I agree that a DIY person will take more care over a dealer. Trouble is you just don't get access to the required tools/computers/firmware upgrade/TSB etc so you just cannot do all the work required.

Your neighbor knew that you took care in your car and serviced it correctly but he knew you. You can't expect your neighbors to purchase all your cars and people that don't know you may not want to take the risk.

[Evista]

I agree that a DIY person will take more care over a dealer. Trouble is you just don't get access to the required tools/computers/firmware upgrade/TSB etc so you just cannot do all the work required.

This guy is servicing a car that is 13 years old - it's a different animal servicing a modern day Lexus or Mercedes.

Good luck anyway and glad to see we could answer his query, guess we'll be hearing from him again sometime.

[budcook]

Well, I still haven't got an answer to my question for the LS-430.

As for me not being able to service a new Lexus then I suppose I should stick to Mercedes. They don't require a rocket scientist to understand them.

I'm getting the impression that Lexus owners are awed by all that technology that Toyota stole from the Germans.

[Monster-Mat]

i dont think its awe, more so that here in Europe a dealer history is worth its weight in gold......

a car is a car regardless of manufacture, there all metal and rubber,with a whole bunch of electronics thrown in......and at the end of the day...an engine is an engine

[flotsam]

I think you'll find all modern cars need expensive diagnostics equipment to service them these days. There's no way that you can comply with emissions regulations without the proper test equipment for example.

In this class of car there is absolutely no way you can properly service a modern car. I've taken engines to bits but would never try to play with the modern ones. The Lexus and the Mercedes of today have extensive computer control of all safety, engine etc systems.

I suggest you buy back that old Mercedes.

[Steve]

doesnt not having the car serviced at recommended intervals invalidate the warranty?

Thats not just with lexus either.

[GreyBeard]

i like the idea of lexus and it's technology, whether 'improved upon german' or homegrown, but at the back of my mind i wonder just how good their electronics are? reading the queries on LOC, many are to do with climate control and instruments (both virtually computer driven devices) and they both fail after 125k or so, or 12years.

what future for 'drive by wire' throttle and brake systems when they get old?

[ColinBarber]

The electronics in Japanese cars are very good. VW/Audi and MB reliability has really suffered in the last 5 years mainly due to electrical problems.

As for the drive by wire throttle there are plenty of GS300 series II and LS400 Series IV with over 100k miles on the clock without having failures. In fact Toyota found the system so reliable that they have removed the mechanical backup system (throttle cable) and are now using an electrical backup system on newer models.

[anikzad]

I am about to do a first 1000 Mile Oil Change on Our LS430. I will let you know how it goes ( I do most all works on our cars).

I do not mean to sound off the cuf, but hate it when when people say you need all these diagnostics tools. If the car is OBDII compliant then, there are plenty of loggers out there. If not, then I am sure one can locate a tool (e.g. VAG tools for VW and Audis). I do own a number of diagnostics tools, including a PALM OBDII logger from http://www.pocketlogger.com. Local people in San Diego, US more than welcome to borrow the tool and other interfaces as they wish.

In any event, how difficult an oild change can be. My M3 requires a rest tool for the lights (which dealer asks for $75 to reset), I bought a tool for $149.00 that not only rests the lights, also provides additional codes for faults besides the OBDII interface.

Stay tune, as this weekend I will do the change. BTW, the dealer 1K check up is Freakin joke... Check transmission fluid, steering column,bluh bluh. IT IS DESIGNED TO GET YOU IN THE DOOR. I asked the kearny Mesa Dealer to adjust my parking brake. the Fu** overzealous tech over did the shoes (inside the rear rotors) and car was shimming at around 70 miles, had to bring it back and re adjust it....

I know I can do a better jon

[ColinBarber]

Anybody can change the oil but there are many things that are much easier or only possible with the Lexus tools. They plug into the OBC-II socket but are not part of the standard. e.g. brake bleeding/ABS testing - with the tool you can to a test on each wheel one at a time or pressurise the circuit to aid bleeding. Also there are many non-standard parameters and codes that and not part of the OBC-II standard. e.g. Throttle position is a standard but accelerator position is not. Another example is how are you going to update the engine or ECU firmware without going to a Lexus dealer?

In the UK the car needs to be serviced by a garage (doesn't have to be Lexus) within the manufactures warranty otherwise it is void. If you buy a used car the 1 year warranty states it has to be serviced by Lexus otherwise the warranty is void.